1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magnetic recording apparatus, and more particularly, to a magnetic recording apparatus including a magnetic recording medium having a burst pattern appropriate for a patterned position in which data is recorded, for example, a discrete track medium or a patterned medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
Presently, information storage apparatuses are required to record and/or reproduce data at a high density even with an abrupt increase in an amount of processed information. In particular, magnetic recording apparatuses using magnetic recording media have a large capacity and high access characteristics and thus, are mainly used as information storage apparatuses for computers and various digital devices. However, if a size of a bit, as a minimum recording unit, or a pitch of a data track is reduced to a range equal to or less than a limit of a magnetic recording medium having a continuous recording layer (hereinafter referred to as a “continuous medium”), noise becomes a significant issue and recording stability is abruptly lowered due to an effect of a neighboring area. Thus, there is a limitation in increasing linear recording density (BPI) in a downtrack direction or track density (TPI) in a crosstrack direction to increase recording density.
Therefore, research is being conducted on discrete track media or patterned media having magnetic recording layers with magnetic recording positions pre-patterned in manufacturing steps. Such discrete track media have structures in which annular data tracks are pre-patterned, and the patterned media have structures in which minimum recording units, i.e., bits, are patterned as island shapes. Here, separation areas among the patterned data tracks or around patterned unit bits are emptied or filled with a non-magnetic material. In the case of such a discrete track medium or a patterned medium, track density can be increased to record data at a high density. As the track density increases, the width of a read head is reduced, thus it is difficult to manufacture the read head and the sensitivity of the read head is lowered. As a result, a voltage of an output signal is lowered and thus results in white noise. Therefore, a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is lowered.
In order to complement this, a head having a structure in which a width of a read head is greater than a width of a data track is suggested. Since a magnetic field is not generated in a separation area of a medium, although the width of the read head is greater than that of a patterned track, noise is not generated from the medium. Also, even if the read head deviates from the data track, since the width of the read head is still greater than that of the data track, output is not lowered and an off-track performance is improved. However, if the width of the read head is greater than that of the data track and an off-track is within a range equal to or less than a predetermined degree, a dead zone, in which a servo signal does not vary, is formed.